Who prefers renewable energy? A moderated mediation model including perceived comfort and consumers’ protected values in green energy adoption and willingness to pay a premium

Abstract

Drawing from research on the halo effect and protected values, consumers’ adoption intentions and willingness to pay a premium for renewable energy were explored. Two theoretical models that involve moderated mediation were tested through two-instance repeated-measures linear regressions and non-parametric tests in a behavioral experiment with an Amazon MTurk sample. In line with the expected halo effect, the effects of the renewability of the energy sources on consumers’ adoption intentions and willingness to pay a premium were mediated through consumers’ perceived comfort. These mediation effects were stronger among consumers with high protected values compared to those with low protected values. The results suggest that the positive evaluations of renewable energies by consumers with high protected values are mainly driven by those values. Conversely, consumers with low protected values would have lower adoption intentions, would be less willing to pay more, and they would not feel comfort at home when using renewable energy compared to consumers with high protected values.